Ham Tien – Mui Ne oil pollution unsolved

As we reported recently, ‘oil gravels’ have appeared along beaches down the Ham Tien – Mui Ne coastline over the last two weeks. No end to this weird phenomenon is in sight.

Nguyen Van Chi from the Saigon – Mui Ne resort, said the pellets that washed up were like an ‘oily gravel’, which could be crushed when squeezed lightly. The pelts would break open, leaving a sticky residue that holds firmly to the fingers, much like hot asphalt.

Mr Chi confirmed that this is the first time these oddities have appeared on the beach his resort. The situation is not confined to a small area, but is affecting resorts in Phan Thiet, like Blue Sea, Coco Beach and Sao Mai. Another 20km further south from Phan Thiet, the Doi Su resort is also being inundated by the odd black swash zone lines and ‘oily gravel’. According to Nguyen Thien Nhan from the Doi Su resort, the black sands and oily gravels have been appearing since late April.

Nguyen Van Thu, Deputy Chairman of the Binh Thuan People’s Committee, said that the local government has dispatched scientists to research the strange phenomenon. The province has asked for full cooperation from the Vietnam Oil and Gas Corporation (PetroVietnam) to identify the problem. Scientists have sent samples of the oily gravels to specialists for analysis. So far the origin of the black objects has not been defined, but resorts in this area are being affected as the number of visitors falls.